Saline City Manager Dan Swallow Announces Resignation

City Manager Dan Swallow announced his resignation at Monday's Saline City Council meeting. 

Swallow was picked by the council for the job after a contentious process in June of 2025 and began on Sept. 8. Swallow, who lives in Saline, delivered the message at the very end of the meeting.

"I have some difficult news I need to deliver tonight, but after long consideration and difficult deliberation, I have decided to resign my position as city manager, effective Aug. 21, 2026," Swallow said.

Citing family responsibilities, Swallow said the decision did not come lightly.

"I've recently assumed a greater role in the care of my mother, as well as the need to relocate to help coordinate her care," Swallow said. 

In addition, following his father's passing, Swallow is assisting in settling his estate and managing his assets.

"These responsibilities require substantial time, travel and attention, making it increasingly difficult for me to maintain a level of commitment and availability the city manager position demands," he said.

He said he planned to pursue other opportunities that more clearly align with his passion for community planning and economic development. He said he was proud of the progress made during his short tenure in Saline, pointing to the downtown square, wastewater treatment plant project, asset management and more.

"Additionally, with the implementation to update budget structure and stronger alignment with long-term capital and planning needs, we've established a solid framework, which I think will serve the city for years to come," he said. "I sincerely am grateful to the city council for the opportunity to serve the Saline community and its residents. While I am disappointed that the circumstance will not allow me to continue my service for a longer period of time, I remain confident in the future of the community and direction that it is headed."

Mayor Brian Marl thanked Swallow for his service.

"We certainly appreciate your tenure and leadership it's almost been a year. And we of course look forward to working with you this next month and a half to close out projects," Marl said.

The City Council has work to do. It must hire a city manager and it must hire a city engineer to replace Tesha Humphriss, who left last week to begin work in Ann Arbor.

Mayor Brian Marl offered a path forward that was accepted by the council.

He tapped Councilor Janet Dillon, the council's liaison to the Michigan Municipal League, to access the organization's list of candidates who can serve as an interim city manager.  Marl said she hoped Dillon could develop a list of candidates and share it with council at the July 20 meeting.

In addition, Marl recommended that he and Dillon meet with City Attorney John Clark to meet once a week with Swallow on a "transition team" "to make sure that things are progressing, and that projects and assignments are passed off to the appropriate staff members and that his colleagues are debriefed on the important initiatives that we are pursuing."

Councilor Nicole Rice urged council to support Swallow's decision.

"I'm going to encourage the rest of my Council colleagues to support decisions like this. And understand that our city staff, especially the directors, especially the city manager, do also have personal lives, and it takes a lot of energy to be in any of those positions. So let's make sure we have kindness and grace over the next month and a half with Mr. Swallow, but also the next six months or so while we have an interim city manager."

Rice also pointed to the loss of Humphriss, the city's new DPW Director (third in a little more than a year).

"Let's be sure we are mindful of our priorities, our duties as city councilors," Rice said.

Since Todd Campbell resigned after more than 12 years in 2020, Saline has had Colleen O'Toole, Elle Cole (on an interim basis), and Swallow.

More News from Saline

• Dillon, Pollington, Burgess Running for Saline City Council All three candidates were seen asking residents to sign their petitions after Monday's council meeting.
• Nicole Rice Not Running for Re-election to Saline City Council Rice is serving the second year of her second term.